


Clandestine

by thats_my_bulma



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: About that angst..., Adult Romance, Alcohol, Alternate Universe, Angst, Can they make each other happy again?!, Did I mention angst, Dominant Geets, Eventual Sex, Explicit Language, F/M, Find out on the next exciting episode of Dragon Ball Z!, First Kiss, Flashbacks, Fluff and Angst, Sad Bulma, Sad Geets, Teen Friendship, hard love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2018-08-24
Packaged: 2019-05-09 17:24:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14720424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thats_my_bulma/pseuds/thats_my_bulma
Summary: Two lonely souls stumble across one another as youths, both hostages under Frieza for different reasons- and they build a friendship in secret until they are torn apart.Two lonely souls chance upon one another again- but everything, as well as nothing has changed.





	1. Wandering Souls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen to the playlist that helps inspire me to write this story [ here! ](https://open.spotify.com/user/smib86/playlist/4xZUr57UC4DeqsCnqoO3cC?si=kxQyE4AzRQ6r_PE3JdTTVg)

**B** ulma stared at the man in shock, feeling that she could laugh, gasp, or even cry when he walked through the door. It had been fourteen, no- _fifteen_ years since she had last seen him? The Saiyan soldier boy stationed on the ship that she and her father occupied for two years had grown up, and she could barely recognize him anymore.

His black eyes had never been kind, they were dark and piercing; _fierce_ \- since he had seen and done too much since a young child. But they weren’t so heartless then, his eyes had still held hope for an escape, a better life out of the clutches of Frieza. But it didn’t look like they had any of that hope anymore. 

His gaze finally settled on her and instant recognition set it, his eyes widening slightly before he glanced away. 

 _Damn him._  

Goddamn him for looking away from her… It had been an eternity since they had unwillingly parted, and he had the gall to turn away from her now. She felt like she could just burst out crying right then and there- _how could he_? Bulma felt her breath hitch, a lump in her throat forming when she called out his name.

“Vegeta!” She yelled over the crowd and music, anger replacing her initial shock as he stopped dead in his tracks, speaking to the two hulking Saiyans behind him, motioning for them to disperse before he glared at her from the entrance to the nightclub. He gave her a cold look that was unkind to say the least. She had been the only person his eyes had ever softened for, at least back then, and now he stared at her like she was shit beneath his pristine white boots.

Her anger built as Vegeta finally decided to make his way over to her with his arms crossed tightly, and he stood before her high-top table, finally meeting her gaze once again as she held back her shock, tears, and wrath. 

He stood just a bit taller than when she had last seen him, but it was easy to see that the years had not been kind to Vegeta. It wasn’t that he was poorly maintained or sickly- on the contrary, he was a masterpiece of the male specimen- it was because he was covered in more scars and bruises than she could count, he was limping, his hair had receded and he looked absolutely exhausted. Not just sleep deprived, but utterly beaten in spirit and body.

“Why did you turn away from me?” Bulma asked, trying to keep the impending quaver from taking over her voice, and he looked down at the tabletop to avoid her gaze. 

“Vegeta, look at me,” She said his name again, and he looked indignant- as if his name spoken out loud was painful to hear- and she hoped it was. _She hoped it fucking was._  

“What do you want, Bulma?” He mumbled, removing one gloved hand from the nook of his elbow and running it over his face exhaustedly. 

“I haven’t seen you in over a fucking decade and you ask me what I want?” Bulma hissed, the lump in her throat now painful as her eyes finally brimmed with the tears she fought so hard to restrain. He shifted his gaze toward her, balling up his fist on the table in silence as the revelry continued around them. To Bulma, the plethora of sound was muffled from her intense focus on the man, _the boy_ she had once called her friend.

“I’m not the same person anymore,” He growled, narrowing his eyes at her as she took a long swig the glowing drink in front of her.

“You were my best friend then, my only friend.” 

“I never had any godsdamned friends,” He scoffed, and Bulma felt her heart sink as she gripped the glass hard enough that she feared it might break it into a million pieces. She watched him miserably for what seemed like an eternity before she spoke up.

“What happened to you?” She swallowed, her voice thick, her mind exploding with the shock of the entire situation. He was right, he wasn’t the same person…not even close.

“Life,” He growled, still standing uncomfortably before her as she wiped the stray tears from her eyes.

“Sit with me.” 

“I’ve…I’ve got to…” He trailed, seeming as if he didn’t want to leave, looking away from her like he wasn’t sure what to even say.

“Got to what?” Bulma feared what he was going to say, thinking he was meeting up with a woman, or a _prostitute_ \- not that is should matter. They had never been a couple in the past, they were just kids then. _But…_

Vegeta looked over his shoulder toward the direction of his unseen Saiyan companions, stalling a moment before pulling out the lens on his scouter and speaking to the recipient of his call in his native language. Bulma watched him carefully, her mind still a storm of emotions as he took the seat in front of her, ending his call and folding the lens back up on his scouter.

“I’m sitting with you, now what?” He mumbled, pulling his gloves off and setting them on the table between them. Bulma took a deep breath, trying to grasp at coherent words and failing to find the ones that conveyed the true importance of their chance meeting.

“I’ve, I just can’t believe you’re here. Where have you been, what have you done?” Bulma questioned, before tacking on an, “Are you with anyone?”, for safe measure. Her heart raced as the Saiyan sat back in his chair with a groan, clearly in pain from a fresh battle.

“I’ve been doing the same shit since- since back then. That’s all I’ve done, and I’m not entertaining that last question with an answer.”

“And you never ranked up?” Bulma blurted without thinking, realizing that she probably said the wrong words as his face flushed slightly.

“No. I’ve never been permitted to rank up. Now if that’s all you’re fucking worried about then I’m going to be on my way…”

“Don’t go.” She sighed, knowing if he was anything like the person he was before, that he didn’t tolerate slights on his dignity, even if it wasn’t meant to be construed that way. Vegeta didn’t grab for his gloves, which was a good sign, and he leaned back once again, arms crossed guardedly, his eyes averted from hers. 

Bulma quickly realized he wasn’t answering her last question because it coincided with the first one. He had never ranked up, never had time to stay in one place long enough to find a partner, never had the time or likely even permission to take a mate. She found her heart sinking once again, but this time with a pity that she wouldn’t dare show him. He would get up and walk out without another word if she did.

“I tried to reach you after we transferred off the _Deific_. I could never contact you…” Bulma trailed as an alien waitress appeared and took her empty glass and their order.

“Another one of these, and whatever he wants.”

“Give me three Dawnstars,” Vegeta mumbled to the blue-skinned woman, and she nodded warily, scampering away to grab the two least content people in the club their drinks.

“My unit changed, we got new scouters, new ship assignments and different frequencies,” Vegeta answered, meeting her gaze as she nodded.

“That would explain why I couldn’t contact you.” 

“You know why, right?”

“Yes,” She muttered, wanting to reach out and touch his rough hands, feel his skin to see if he was truly there. She had known for a fact she would never see him again, and yet here he was in this nightclub, of all places, at the same time as her.

“When they found out about us…” Vegeta trailed as he grabbed the first Dawnstar shot from the waitress’s four-fingered hand and downed it as if it were water. Bulma knew that the strong alcohol was fire made liquid, and she felt the slightest bit of awe before sipping her own fruity drink, getting her head back in the conversation.

“I know, that was when we got transferred too. _He_ made sure to keep us apart, evil fuck.” Bulma answered, her heart breaking over again. They had only been kids, just friends, had never done any more than kiss…

Vegeta sighed as he downed his second shot, seeming as if he was in a real hurry to get drunk. Shit, Bulma was heading that way too, and the two sat in a long silence before she spoke up again.

“How have you been?” She questioned quietly, feeling her hand reaching out for his, and he pulled his own back with a jerk; as if she was a fire ready to turn him to ash. He didn’t change his expression though, he just stared down at the table as his mind processed her question.

“Inadequate, in all things,” He finally answered, giving a dry laugh as he continued to stare at the lights flickering off the tabletop, and Bulma took a deep breath, wondering what in the fuck they had done to him- what life had done to him. She wanted to embrace him somehow, touch him in some way, let him know that she was truly there, but she knew that he wouldn’t let her…

-8-8-8-

Bulma would never forget the day she had met him.

She was sitting in a recessed window sill at the end of a quiet corridor, reading a book on her tablet when she was interrupted by a conversation, male voices speaking a language she couldn’t understand coming from the closest stairwell. She looked up at the aliens as they entered the corridor- three of them, each covered in blood and bruises and stinking to high heaven of gore and sweat. 

Bulma observed in silent fascination a bald hulk of a man and two boys around her age, one with a wild, trailing mane and another, shorter youth with a shock of dark hair and a fringe covering his forehead. All three of them had simian tails but were remarkably human otherwise- and she figured that they also took her for being remarkably close to whatever species they were as well since they all shared a long, silent look at one another.

The bald man and the maned boy spoke to each other in their native tongue, stealing glances at Bulma in fascination as they slowed- but the shorter boy just stared, wide-eyed and curious. He and Bulma locked eyes for a moment, and her heart leapt peculiarly. She wanted to say hi, was just about ready to when the maned youth said something to the shorter boy’s chagrin, and he turned on his comrade, chastising him with a venom she had seldom witnessed before. The maned boy shut his mouth, and the three aliens passed her without another glance or word.

Bulma watched the trio as they silently made their way down the hall before they entered a dorm at the far end of the corridor, and she smiled at the short one when he gave her one last glance before closing the door behind himself. In that moment, Bulma felt like she had hit the jackpot- this was the first time she had been on the eleventh floor, but she decided it wouldn’t be the last. There was no one else on the damn ship that was close to her age or species- and she wanted nothing more than to talk to the boys. She desperately needed a friend…

It had been over three months since she had spoken to another teenager, three months since her life had been turned upside down. It all started when her brilliant father had brokered a deal with the World Trade Organization, Frieza was on the lookout for the universe’s most brilliant engineers and scientists- and the emperor had heard of a father/daughter duo from Earth that met his criteria to a T. Bulma and her father had agreed to join the organization under the promise that Earth would be spared, and they did so even though they knew they would be developing technology that would allow the tyrants empire to flourish, producing technology that would end countless worlds.

But they had no other choice.

-

Vegeta would never forget the day he had met her.

How could he? 

She was gorgeous, a girl around his age and so close to his own nearly extinct species that he and his subordinates slowed to gawk like fucking idiots.

“What the hell is she?” Raditz had murmured, hitting Nappa on the arm excitedly.

“Not a Saiyan, but close,” The older man had answered, noticing Vegeta staring at her as if he had witnessed the Saiyan goddess of hope herself.

“Just look at her, she looks like she’s around our age, Vegeta. What the fuck is she doing here?” 

“Getting in trouble with you two,” Nappa had grinned, and Raditz had flashed him a smug smirk in response.

“Trouble eh? Cause I wanna’ take her down to the cargo hold and fuck her, you meaning that kind of trouble?” Raditz grinned at the bald man before Vegeta turned back to the slightly older teen with incredulous anger, reprimanding him for his crude words.

“Shut your fucking mouth, Raditz. Godsdamn you, you perverted fuck! Get to the room and don’t say another word to me tonight, you piece of shit!” Vegeta had barked, effectively shutting his subordinate down, and it felt good. It always felt good ripping the moron a new one for saying stupid shit, and it was something he got to do regularly because Raditz _was_ _a fucking idiot._

Raditz’ crude words had gotten under Vegeta’s skin a bit deeper than normal that time though, the girl was _incredible_. He had all but forgotten what a Saiyan woman looked like, he hadn’t seen one since he was five, but he imagined it was just like her without hair and eyes the color of his destroyed home-world’s oceans. And that made her rare, made her remarkable and therefore altogether far too good for Raditz. 

Vegeta made sure his two idiots entered the dorm before him, so he could get one last glance at the girl. He was surprised to see that she was still watching him, and she gave him the slightest smile, causing his face to redden as he shut the door behind himself with a giddy, fearful enthusiasm. It was an odd feeling, especially since he knew that nothing would come of it. He didn’t have the balls to go back and talk to her, which meant he would likely never see her again. He had no idea who she was, but she sure as hell wasn’t a soldier and had no good reason to be on the eleventh floor.  

“You going to go back out and talk to her?” Nappa had asked his prince, bringing the boy back to the situation at hand, and Vegeta gave him the darkest glare he could manage. 

“Why would I do that?”

“You were standing by the door for an awfully long time, and you were staring at her like you wanted to say something, so I just…”

“You were wrong,” Vegeta answered frankly, pulling off his filthy gloves and throwing them into the laundry chute.

It irritated him however, because Nappa _wasn’t_ wrong. Vegeta was just too much of a coward to make a move, and he sure as shit wouldn’t ever admit that for as long as he lived.

-8-8-8-

Vegeta looked back up at the woman in front of him, his mind already starting to get fuzzy from the two shots he had downed. It was a good feeling, and he needed more of it to loosen up, needed more just to deal with the shit that had just been thrown at him.

She was more gorgeous than he had even remembered, her brilliant blue-green hair had been long and often kept back in a ponytail, but now it was cut into a sleek, straight bob. She wore a black dress that was seemingly painted onto her curves, and he couldn’t help but wonder just what she looked like underneath it. It was nearly painful to look at her, knowing he would likely never have her, never get the chance to kiss her once again. He was such a failure, and she was always too good for him… _fuck._

The trip to the wretched night club was supposed to be one in which he didn’t have to think, one where he didn’t have to deal with his past and didn’t have to admit to his former infatuation that he had gotten nowhere in life. He was thirty-three fucking years old and still a basic soldier in Frieza’s army. He hadn’t ranked up, hadn’t gotten a raise, hadn’t done much of anything except annihilate planets since he was a godsdamn kid- Frieza would never allow it. And if she knew the reason that he was there on that night, _damn_ … that would just be the icing on the proverbial cake.

Bulma looked up at him in a way he didn’t much care for, she was weepy, and he could tell she was trying hard to hide her pity, Gods. That’s all he needed, was her damn pity. But even though he was mortified for her to see what he had become, he stayed. He had no idea why, but he stayed…

He could be picking out a whore in the back of the club, could be going up to a room where he wouldn’t have to think anymore, try and forget his physical pain as he fucked the shit out her, satisfying his biological urges but never really getting anything out of it. Nothing more than a temporary shot of endorphins and another two to four weeks without having to fuck another whore. At this point he might as well just stick with his damn hand, what did it even matter…

“I still can’t believe you’re really here,” Bulma said after a sip of whatever gross looking, glowing green shit she was drinking. He couldn’t believe he was there either, though, it was all surreal, like he was on autopilot and she was a distant memory come back from the ashes. He had tried so hard to forget about her… 

“I can’t either,” He finally murmured, downing the third shot of dark liquid and relishing the burn as the spiced alcohol slipped down his throat. Godsdamn, that was a feeling he could understand, a pleasant pain, something that felt truly real in this bizarre emotional snafu. 

He looked up at her questioningly, suddenly wondering why in the fuck she was sitting by herself. That should have been one of the first things to notice…

“Why are you alone?” He asked, wishing to all the gods he knew that he had another drink.

“I live next door to this place, I come here to socialize…” Bulma blushed slightly, and he raised an eyebrow. Surely, she hadn’t sunk to prostitution…

“And no, it’s probably not what you’re thinking. I just, like to talk to people, to get free drinks,” She smiled sheepishly, and he nodded with a dry laugh. 

It was just _grand_ , wasn’t it? Bulma, the once bright spot in his life, the jewel that gave him hope was now flirting with random men in a cheap nightclub to get free drinks. So, she was probably just as lonely as he was then, probably fucked a good number of those men, too…maybe he didn’t have a reason to be so embarrassed after all.

“I didn’t say a word,” He replied dryly, giving her a ghost of a grin, “I guess I’m buying for you tonight.”

Her face lit up with a real smile, and Vegeta couldn’t help but remember the fondness he had for her, a girl he had been friends with in secret, a girl that he would likely have taken as his mate when they had gotten older and he had gotten promoted. Those times were long gone, never meant to be- and he had swept all that shit under the rug- but now… now she smiled at him like she had used to. Now she brought back those dusty feelings of hope that had eluded him since the day that he ultimately realized that he would never get anywhere in life. 

Not this again, not again. He had no reason to hope anymore…not again…

But damn it, the seed had been planted.

-8-8-8-

Bulma visited the eleventh floor to ‘read’ whenever she could find the time, or when she wasn’t so exhausted that all she wanted to do was sleep forever. Work had become increasingly more demanding, and she found herself having less and less leisure time.

She had found no luck in encountering the Saiyans three times in a row, but on the fourth day she had seen them again. She knew the name of their species after a search on the net, and she had found out that their planet had been destroyed just over a decade prior. Those three were likely some of the last in existence, and she found that to be incredibly sad- but it also made sense that they had gawked at her… they had likely not seen another alien that looked remotely like them, especially not a female.

She had regarded the Saiyans with a smile, her eyes immediately meeting the shorter boys once again. The tall youth with the wild mane was cute, probably a bit older than she was, but the shorter one was more… _captivating._ She couldn’t say what it was about him that drew her eyes to his so naturally, but they did, and she wanted desperately to talk to him. Wanted to know his name, at the very least.

“Hey,” She finally spoke up, her heart thumping as the Saiyans beheld her like she had grown a second head. She felt her hands becoming clammy as she gripped the tablet, feeling a wave of nervous energy that was so rare for her. She never had a problem talking to anyone, but these Saiyans… _damn._ They were intimidating.

The short one motioned to his brethren to leave him, and he turned back to Bulma, his cheeks taking on a rosy hue as he folded his arms, seeming just as nervous as she did. 

“What…what are you doing here?” The boy asked in the universal language, the end of his tail flicking like that of an agitated cat.

“I come up here to read sometimes, this floor is usually pretty quiet, and I like the window,” Bulma answered, leaving out the fact that she had returned just to see them…to see _him_ , again. 

“Oh.”

“What’s your name? I’m Bulma,” She replied, putting her tablet down and feeling her confidence swiftly return without the other two Saiyans hovering above her.

“Vegeta,” He answered, and she could tell he was the only truly nervous one now. He had blood spattered all over his armor, cuts, and bruises from recent battles- but he was nearly too anxious to even talk to her. Bulma found it oddly endearing, and she smiled widely at him.

“It’s nice to meet you. I figured you were around my age, fifteen?”

“Sixteen…”

“I was close! I haven’t talked to another person my age in…a while,” She sighed, thinking of all of her friends back on Earth. Friends she would likely never see again.

“Yeah…” He trailed, his tail still swaying as he made eye contact with her once again, “What do you do here?”

“I’m a scientist…uh, an engineer actually. I’m helping to develop weapons, better scouters, new technology and all that fun stuff.” She grinned, feeling like a nerd when he raised an eyebrow at her incredulously. 

“You’re…young for that.” 

“I could say the same for you,” She replied frankly, watching him fidget where he stood. He was cute but so painfully shy it was nearly hard to talk to him, “I was surprised how much our species look alike, though.”

“It’s an unusual coincidence,” He murmured distractedly, looking down the hall, presumably to make sure his companions weren’t watching. 

“It is,” Bulma answered, wanting the boy to sit with her, hopeful that he would calm his nerves and talk to her. 

“Come, sit with me.” She stated, scooting over to the far end of the recess and patting the metal surface for him.

“I can’t…can’t fraternize with females on the ship…like this.”

“What do you mean?” Bulma asked, taken aback by his words. Couldn’t fraternize with females? But why?

“Not in the open. We’re not allowed to…”

“Have friends?”

“Well, no. Not if Frieza thinks it’s…we're... you know.”

Bulma stared at the boy in surprise, his face now as red as a ripe strawberry, and she quickly rushed to change the subject, simply because she didn’t want him to leave. She needed this.

“Well, a few minutes can’t hurt, right? What do you do?”

The boy gave her a dark look, his cheeks still red and betraying any semblance of composure.

“Isn’t it obvious, girl?” He grumbled irritably, motioning to the blood on his armor. It wasn’t nearly as awful as the last time she had seen him, but the gore still disconcerted her nonetheless.

“Yes, you’re a soldier, fine, so much for small talk. But why do you do it? Does it pay well?”

Vegeta laughed, a dry, ugly bark, his face contorting into a bitter grin as he side eyed her maliciously, and Bulma felt herself fiddle anxiously with her finger and thumb. She didn’t care for the way he looked at all when he laughed...

“I didn’t have a choice, probably about as much as you had. Probably _less_ then you had.”

“What does that mean?” Bulma snapped, anger swiftly replacing her distress as she felt the boy was making light of her own situation.

“It doesn’t matter anymore. And no, it doesn’t pay shit,” He said bitterly, looking over his armored shoulder once again. _He was so nervous_ …

“What’s wrong?”

“Eyes, always watching,” He murmured just above a whisper, turning back to her with his arms crossed tightly. Bulma swallowed audibly, suddenly feeding into the boy’s paranoia and looking around the two corridors, not seeing a soul other than the Saiyan in front of her. But from the way he was acting, it must have been serious for them to be caught…but why?

“Maybe we can meet somewhere on the ship, somewhere we won’t be watched?”

His face blanched.

“What? Why?”

“So, we can _talk_ without fear, you dingus,” She griped, irritated by his response. _She wasn’t some damned hooker..._

“Dingus?” He queried, his tail snapping irritably as he gave her a side eye. He may not have known the word, but he seemed pretty sure of the context.

“Yes, dingus. Like dummy, moron- an idiot,” She sassed, letting her wild temper take hold, and he narrowed his eyes dangerously at her. Bulma immediately knew she had gone too far, and she realized she needed to rein back her snark with him. She was quickly getting the hint that he was a complex creature, probably not one to be crossed without consequences, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that you actually _were_ one.”

He huffed, looking away from her for a moment, the gears in his mind turning rapidly as she watched him closely.

“There…there’s a cargo hold on the belly of the ship. I’ve heard that there are several blind spots without cameras, that the men…go down there to fraternize with females. NOT that I’m implying anything like that, it’s just a safe area, and maybe we can go there to talk,” Vegeta disclosed, watching Bulma carefully as a smile lit across her face.

“Yes, that sounds fun. When should we meet?”

“Tomorrow at eighteen hundred, you take the lift down to the hold, go left at the stairwell- out of sight, and I’ll find you.”

“If I don’t have to work late I’ll be there,” She affirmed, and the Saiyan nodded, taking his leave from her and making his way to the dorm without another word.

-

“So how did it go on your first date?” Nappa teased as Vegeta entered the room, and the boy threatened the hulking man with his sparking fist. 

“Shut up Nappa. I don’t want to hear another word about it.”

“You know you’re gonna’ get caught,” Raditz called out from the shower in a mocking, singsong voice, and Nappa conceded.

“You gotta’ be careful, Vegeta. You don’t want Zarbon or any of Frieza’s cronies catching you with a girl. They’ll cut your dick off for that shit.”

“We’re…god we’re not doing anything. We’re just talking, she’s…she’s lonely.”

Raditz barked laughter from the shower, and Nappa tried fruitlessly to hide his grin.

“Lonely, huh?” 

“Yes, dumbass. Now shut the fuck up, both of you _dinguses_.” Vegeta hissed, using the new insult he had just learned, and to his relief, there was no talk about the alien girl for the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoy my new story- I, of course, am a sucker for angst (but also angst with happy endings). I can't promise that this one will have a happy ending, but we'll see when the time comes! ;)
> 
> A big thank you goes out to my beta reader/editor [ HannaBellLecter!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HannaBellLecter/pseuds/HannaBellLecter)\- and thank all of you for reading! <3


	2. Breaching Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bulma and Vegeta learn interesting things about one another, they also reflect on the past

 “What are you doing in this club, Vegeta? This isn’t your kind of place, right?” Bulma said before she took a long sip of her dwindling drink. She was desperately to revive the conversation when it had awkwardly lulled, unsure of what to say to get his attention without pissing him off. 

Vegeta was never so wretched in the past- he was shy, of course, but he was also proud and sharp-witted, full of life, as well as possessing a good dose of piss and vinegar. Now, he just leaned on one arm, apathetically watching the lights dancing off the surface of the table as if his mind was in a galaxy far away from his body.   

Bulma cleared her throat and Vegeta finally glared up at her, raising one eyebrow and letting out a dry laugh before running his bare hand over his face exhaustedly.

“You don’t want to know why I'm here, woman.”

Bulma’s stomach sank, remembering that the back of the club connected to a flesh den- _a damned whorehouse_ \- and that’s where Nappa and Raditz had made their way off to. Surely... _not Vegeta_ , she just couldn’t believe it- her childhood friend, who had shown up at the same club, at the same time in an unfathomably huge universe- was just here to get a _goddamn whore_.

She took a deep breath, downing the rest of her drink and wished for something ten times stronger when he all but confirmed her suspicion. 

“You’re here for the whores?”

Vegeta rolled his eyes, looking away from her with a guilty shrug, but he didn’t deny her inquiry. Bulma stared at him nearly slack-jawed, she was utterly disgusted at first, unbelieving that the proud Vegeta would sink so low. But Bulma quickly realized that his time with a whore was likely the only physical contact that he could get other than from fighting, and her disgust turned to pity once again. He had been a virgin when they had been parted- hell, they both had been…

-

Vegeta immediately noticed the disgusted look on Bulma’s face when she had asked him about his nights nefarious endeavor, and it made him mad- made him absolutely livid, in fact. How was flashing a good portion of her tits and flirting with any man that bought her a drink really any different? How did that make her better than him? _Goddamn her…_

“I guess I should go, then. Find a decent woman to fuck before the good ones get picked over,” he growled, snatching up his gloves and making to leave when Bulma shouted at him over the thumping music.

“Vegeta! What the hell!?”

“Oh, don’t worry, your drinks are on my tab, Bulma, you won’t have to _pay_ for a goddamn thing.” 

Bulma stood up, breathing hard as she glared at Vegeta, and the Prince swallowed anxiously as he turned his head to make eye contact with her- he was so pissed off at her, and at himself- when he saw the tears welling up in her brilliant blue eyes. Damn her. Damn her, _damn her._  

“Stop,” she breathed, doing a shitty job at swallowing her sorrow. Vegeta exhaled, his own emotions rearing their ugly head after so many years of monotonous, mind-numbing carelessness- years of completely burying anything resembling ‘giving a fuck’.

But he _did_ give a fuck about her, _damn her_.

“Why should I stay? What does it even matter anymore?” He managed, his heart rate picking up as he waited breathlessly for her answer. He had no idea what the fuck she was going to say, and it terrified him. Her stint of seemingly endless silence simply scared him to death…

“Because, I loved you, Vegeta. I always have…” Bulma trailed with a trembling voice, her arms at her sides in near defeat.

He was shocked, _speechless_. He couldn’t believe the words that had just come out of her mouth _._

Vegeta looked away from her, his breath coming in short spurts as his heart raced, and he knew he needed to get out of the club. He needed some fresh air and silence, needed to process _what the fuck_ was going on, and what she had admitted to him. He dug into his pocket, pulling out a holocard doubling as his military ID as well as a credit chip, and he tossed it to the table in front of Bulma.

“Pay for our shit, I’m stepping outside. Just…come out,” Vegeta asserted, not looking back at the woman as he pushed his way through the crowd and stepped out into the blessedly cool night outside of the club. 

What. The. _Fuck._

Vegeta slowed his breathing, mentally calming himself and regulating his heartbeat as he crossed the street, making as much distance between himself and the people standing outside the nightclub’s neon lights as possible. 

Bulma had admitted a truth to him that he had never confirmed, something he had wondered about in the very back of his mind for fifteen goddamned years. _She had loved him,_ and she was the only being he could ever remember that had. 

-8-8-8-

Vegeta was a nervous wreck, waiting in the belly of the ship for a girl he had no business consorting with. Frieza made it very clear that the lower ranked soldiers didn’t need or deserve the distractions of the flesh, at least not on any of his ships- and there would be punishments doled out if any of them were caught. 

Especially for Vegeta- and possibly for the girl, if Frieza wanted to be extra petty. He would make sure that the Saiyan Prince knew good and well that any punishment that befell Bulma was on him, was his own fault…

But he _wanted_ to see her. It made him feel oddly selfish ( _a foreign concept to him_ ), but he couldn’t help but feel the need to talk to her, to make some sort of connection with someone so close in age and physical characteristics. It would be a good distraction, a break in the monotony of his work- _kill, sleep, eat, repeat_. Add in a girl to that mix, and it made life a little more interesting.

He often talked to Nappa and Raditz, and sometimes to other soldiers, but rarely did he speak to any sort of female…and _never_ to such a beautiful girl. And so, it was an exciting prospect…who knew, maybe something else could possibly come of their clandestine meetings someday… 

_Yeah, right._

He shook his head, exasperated with himself because of his reluctance to speak with, and experience a woman. He had gotten plenty of chances when out with Nappa and Raditz, the two _dinguses_ frequented flesh dens- but he had never wanted anything to do with that. Vegeta felt the entire setup of a whorehouse was awkward and somewhat _gross_. Fucking women that had been with how many others before them? _Gross._

And his problem wasn’t that he feared not knowing what to do with a woman. Quite the contrary.

Vegeta had been the unfortunate witness to several of Raditz’ nefarious escapades, in the same damn room nonetheless. He had been woken up by the lustful sounds of rutting by his slightly older subordinate, and he had watched in horror and fascination before grabbing the nearest item to throw at the couple. Vegeta would always end up spewing empty threats to rip Raditz’ nuts off and feed them to a gorchik if he caught him disrespecting his Prince like that _ever_ again. It always ended with the girl scurrying out of the room with sheets sloppily covering her form and Raditz arguing halfheartedly before settling with his hand for the night.

But, despite the Prince’s threats, it had happened on other occasions- and unfortunately for Vegeta, Raditz retained his manhood. No lucky gorchik got a feast of Saiyan bits, and oddly enough, Raditz never got caught by his superiors.

So, ultimately, Vegeta knew very well how it all worked, and knew what to do if the time ever came- but he had just never stumbled upon the chance to couple with a female that was receptive _and_ wasn’t a whore. So, he remained a boy in the eyes of his elders- _but really_ , fuck them. He was still their goddamned Prince in the end…

Vegeta lost track of his thoughts when he heard footsteps on metal stairs, and he pushed himself closer into a shadowy support beam for concealment, watching with narrowed eyes and bated breath. He only hoped the girl had gotten the time to visit- prayed to his dead gods that it wasn’t Zarbon or some other asshole following him with a scouter turned on, easily able seek him out and turn him over to Frieza…

But thankfully, it wasn’t that at all.

Vegeta exhaled in relief as Bulma’s purple sneakers squeaked against the metal when she gingerly descended the stairs, her face set in curiosity as she looked around the massive area.

“Stay against the stairwell,” Vegeta called out as quietly as he could and still get her attention. Bulma stared over her shoulder at him, eyes wide with surprise until she recognized his face, and then she beamed at him. Vegeta felt his stomach sink and his famous blush bloom over his cheeks as she hugged the stairwell, dressed in a pink dress with her hair pulled up in a bow, and he thought that he had never seen anything so beautiful before in all his sixteen years.

-

Bulma had been nervous, but mostly just excited to talk to her new friend. She knew he was a soldier, was unfortunately aware that because of his profession that he had enough blood on his hands to fill an extraordinarily large body of water, but ultimately, he was just a teenager like her. He was shy, he was very human-like, and he seemed to be interested in talking to her too. 

And that’s all she needed. 

A friend to talk to in the maddening confines of the _Deific_ , someone to share her time with- and it didn’t hurt one bit that he was cute.

“I didn’t think I would get out in time, I was afraid you’d be gone,” Bulma whispered, standing in front of the slightly shorter boy with her arms held loosely behind her back. Vegeta was blushing slightly, seemingly overwhelmed by her presence, but he nodded for her to follow him without a word.

The Saiyan led Bulma down between large shipping containers, nearly in full darkness before making his way to a corridor scarcely lit by flickering yellow lights that strobed disconcertingly overhead, causing the narrow passageway to feel like something from a horror movie. She stared anxiously around at her surroundings, wondering if she had made the right choice when she nearly ran into the boy in front of her.

Vegeta bared his teeth agitatedly as he looked over his shoulder, knitting his eyebrows and holding one gloved hand up to halt her as she swallowed nervously.

“Slow down.”

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t paying attention…” 

“I noticed,” he whispered before leaning around the corner of an open room cautiously, scenting the air like an animal before stepping through the open door and into the dark space.

“It’s safe,” Vegeta assured her under his breath, and he led Bulma through the eerie room and behind a stack of empty crates.

“What is this place?”

“It was a refrigerated storage area, obviously not in use anymore. No more fresh food, no need for it.”

“I’m surprised they haven’t been repurposed.”

Vegeta shrugged, pulling some empty crates off the stack in near darkness as Bulma watched.

“It’s too dark, is there…”

“Light? Yes,” Vegeta replied, opening the lens on his scouter, causing the red glow to cast the two in a rosy hue.

“It’s still dark,” Bulma laughed nervously, and the Saiyan rolled his eyes as he set two crates down for them to take a seat on, placing the scouter in between them on another.

“This is the best we’ve got, can't use much or we could attract attention.”

Bulma sat down, feeling a bit more comfortable within the cover of the cubby that he had brought them to, and she watched him lean back against the wall, his arms crossed tightly and his tail wrapped firmly around his waist. The boy wasn’t so good at hiding his emotions, and she could tell he was very nervous; possibly because of the threat of being caught, but most likely because he was in a private, dark space with a girl.

“Well, it’ll do then,” Bulma smiled, causing the Saiyan to glance away from her to stare at the opposite wall. Yes, he was definitely anxious because of her…

-8-8-8-

Bulma paid her and Vegeta’s tab at the bar as strobing lights flickered and the bass reverberated through her body. Although she enjoyed the atmosphere, she could definitely understand why Vegeta didn’t. She had heard him go off on Raditz a few times with a fury she had been in awe of, knew he likely didn’t mind the chaotic cacophony of battle ( _probably loved it_ ), and she had heard that he was an avid trash talker to other soldiers- but in general, he was of a quiet nature, not even caring for the music that she played when they were together. At least the boy she used to know was that way…

Bulma grabbed Vegeta’s ID holocard, glancing down at his angry mug in the picture and smiling slightly as she made her way through the crowd and toward the front of the bar. What was she going to say to him, what in the hell was going to happen? Would she take him home with her…?

She wasn’t quite sure about that… maybe not yet. It would just feel wrong- if they were going to have sex, then she wanted it to more than a clumsy fuck and an awkward goodbye. He meant more to her than that. 

Bulma startled as an alien man smacked her ass just before she reached the exit, and she turned around to give the guy a glare and the finger before the bouncer opened the door for her. Normally she would have gone off on the asshole, but she had more important issues to tend to tonight.

She had Vegeta.

-

Vegeta waited with his arms crossed tightly over his chest, leaning on the stone wall of the adjacent building, well enough away from the club so that he could almost ignore the thumping of the bass and the raucous uproar within. 

The night was cool- nearly cold, but the stone against his back still held a satisfying warmth that felt good on his overtaxed muscles. If he remembered correctly, this was primarily a desert planet that had sweltering days and cool, breezy nights. It would have been a lot like Vegetasei, he thought. 

He was so far removed from any of that now, though, that he couldn’t trust himself to remember exactly what his home planet was like. It had been twenty-six fucking years since it had been destroyed, he had been seven, and he hadn’t stepped foot on it since he was five...

He glanced up to see the woman exiting the club in tall heels, with her dress so tantalizingly short and tight that it made his heart sink. He couldn’t help but think of all the obscene things he wanted to do to her, couldn’t help but wonder how tantalizing she would look without the dress on- and _fuck_ \- his mouth was watering at the thought of tasting her… and it all made him somewhat ashamed. She wasn’t wrong that they had been friends, but she had been his goddamn infatuation. 

They had been so innocent in the ways of the flesh back then, too. Of course he was a teenager, he _had_ wanted her, but he had also been so ridiculously shy for whatever reason, that he had never made a move. Fuck, it had been so, _so_ long ago… 

“You don’t look happy,” Bulma announced as she clicked across the pavement, and Vegeta made a nasty face at her as she held his holocard up, “Right now you _really_ don’t look happy- but I was meaning in your picture. You look pissed; like you wanted to kill the photographer.”

“Maybe I did,” he grumbled, holding out one gloved hand and snatching his ID from her fingers. She gave him a slight grin as he pocketed the holocard, and he ran a gloved hand over his face. 

The situation was making him tired, making him wonder why in the fuck he had decided to even come out on that night. If he hadn’t decided to join his moron subordinates he would be at the hotel, jacking off before falling into a drunken sleep without a care in the world. 

Vegeta knew well, though, that if he had done that then he wouldn’t have ever gotten to see _her_ again. He would have never known what in the fuck had happened to her when they were stationed so far apart from one another, never would have known about her love for him. But on the other hand, he would have never found out that she had turned into some barfly that flirted ( _and probably fucked_ ) for drinks. That part was more than disappointing.

Bulma reached into her purse and grabbed a pack of cigarettes, offering Vegeta one, to which he accepted without enthusiasm. It was a nasty habit, but a habit nonetheless.

“What’s made you so damn sour?” Bulma asked before she lit her cigarette, puffing until the cherry formed and handing the lighter over to Vegeta, who followed her lead. He thought about her question, surprised at first, until he remembered he had never been so nasty to Bulma in the past... no wonder she had brought his shitty attitude up. He hated to admit it to himself, but he was just so embarrassed for her to witness his failure, that he had tried immediately to push her away.

“The same shit day in and day out, pathetic life, I guess,” he said after blowing a puff of smoke, feeling comforted by the asinine act, wondering why inhaling such vile toxins could elicit such feelings of pleasure.

“I can relate,” Bulma rolled her eyes, leaning up against the wall with him with a long sigh, “I’ve been here on this planet since I was seventeen, doing the same damn thing every single day.”

Vegeta glanced over at her with his eyebrow cocked slightly. Had she not even gotten to leave the planet, _ever_?

“You and your father?”

“He died, about five years ago.”

Vegeta took another long draw, thinking about how impossibly old the man had been back then, and how he had been so surprised that the geezer had ever had it in him to sire a child so late in life. It wasn’t a surprise, though, to hear of his passing…

“Why did you get stationed here?”

Bulma laughed, ashing her cigarette at her side.

“Weapons manufacturing is what this planet is known for,” she shrugged, looking up at him with a bitter smile, “I’m here for weapons design, building new and more deadly weapons for both the military and civilian use. You know, it was just _exactly_ how I wanted to spend my life.”

Vegeta was somewhat surprised by her situation, not realizing that she was still under Frieza’s thumb…it hadn’t occurred to him that she would still be forced to work for the empire, but it made perfect sense. Why would they ever let an asset like her go? He and Bulma weren’t so far off in their situations- they were both miserable creatures.

Bulma took a long drag from her cigarette, and she blew smoke up into the night air before speaking again.

“I have very little access to the outside, anywhere beyond this city- this planet. The empire has so many restrictions on what we can and can’t see- intergalactic news is banned here, communications are collared. So, any information I get is from talking to… _flirting_ with soldiers, in particular. It’s not anything to be proud of…” she trailed, her voice quavering slightly, “But I learn a lot that way. Sometimes things I didn’t really want to know…”

Vegeta tapped his cigarette of its ash, not looking at the woman when she made her confession. She was cut off from the empire for some reason, cut off from the rest of the universe and she was starving for knowledge. She was desperate for a way out, and that’s why she was at the bar. He was relieved to know that she actually hadn’t sunk so low after all… 

“I’m sorry for telling you all this shit,” she laughed, causing Vegeta to meet her gaze, and he shrugged slightly. He didn’t mind her admissions, but he hated what had become of her. None of this shit should have ever happened to someone like Bulma…

“Why are you cut off?”

“All the scientists and engineers are. I guess so that we can’t reach out? Can’t get any coordination for escape. Who knows. Anyhow, _you_ ,” She poked his arm, “Tell me…something, anything about you now- not just about how shitty things are.”

“Nothing to say. I stay out of Frieza’s way and destroy anything I’m told to. Same shit as always, literally nothing ever changes.”

“I haven’t seen that bastard since we were stationed off the _Deific_.”

“I haven’t either,” Vegeta admitted with smoke billowing from his mouth. He had done well at avoiding Frieza, staying off the grid with work, meeting his deadlines and not causing trouble. It certainly helped that the Emperor was off fighting wars in his home galaxy- the tyrant didn’t have time to toy with his Saiyan hostage anymore.

“Good,” Bulma replied, taking one last, long draw before throwing the spent cigarette on the ground and crushing it with the toe of her shoes, “Fuck him.”

-8-8-8-

They didn’t get to meet often, and the first few tête-à-têtes had been somewhat awkward before the two teenagers began really warming up to one another. Bulma was more than pleased when the boy began getting somewhat chatty with her, and they talked about mundane things- about his missions, her work in the lab, as well as having discussions ( _usually humorous_ ) about other inhabitants on the _Deific_. 

When Vegeta had finally asked her about Earth and her species, she had gladly told him, openly spoke about her own life, admitted that she missed it more than she could ever express. But Vegeta was opposite, he rarely spoke a word to her about his destroyed world, and he changed the subject or clammed up when she pushed it, and it irritated her to no end.

By the time that he admitted his story to her, they had been meeting for just over seven months for a few hours at a time, once a week if their schedules permitted. They had made the storage room nook into a more comfortable lounge, Bulma had brought a better light, some small, squashed pillows to sit on, and a ragged ‘table cloth’ for their center crate.

Vegeta had provided a broadcast chip, that when plugged into his scouter, would play music from transmissions all over the galaxy from its speakers. It was a hard item to come by, but he had won it in a sparring contest with a soldier that had nearly beaten him. The chip wasn’t something he had cared about personally, but he knew that she would enjoy it after all her talk about longing to listen to music again. She, of course, had fallen in love with it, playing the music softly as they spent their time together in secret- and that had made him happy.

And being happy for another person was a new one on him.

-

They had just sat down when Bulma grabbed his scouter from the table crate, scanning the various stations until she found one she liked, and she sat back with a satisfied sigh. 

While she and her father had their own military issued computer, it wasn’t much use when it came to audio media, as none of them came with speakers. And so, when Vegeta had brought her the gift of music, she had hugged him tightly, causing him to blush deeply and stutter for the first half of their meeting that day. 

But Bulma felt that the mood was different at this particular meet-up, Vegeta wasn’t really speaking, and he didn’t have the same contented look that he often got when they settled down in their den. No, something was definitely bothering him.

“What’s wrong?” she had asked him, settling her back against the wall as the boy made a face, looking down at his bare hands wordlessly. Bulma cocked an eyebrow, asking him once again and he ignored her entirely as he continued staring down at his closed fists. She scrunched up her face, wondering why in the hell they were even meeting up if he wasn’t going to talk when he looked up at her with a miserable glower. She wasn’t used to seeing that, not on him, and it was disconcerting. 

“Vegeta, what’s going on?”

“It’s stupid shit, really.”

“What is? I can’t read your mind,” she told him, beginning to worry about her friend.

“Today, well. _Fuck_ …” Vegeta inhaled, rolling his neck until it popped, “I turn seventeen today.”

“Oh, happy birthday!” Bulma beamed, excited for him, but wondering why it was such an issue for him to talk about. Birthdays were supposed to be happy occasions…

“Right…”

“I would have gotten you something, but I haven’t exactly been able to get out to the store lately,” Bulma grinned, hoping to get a positive response from the Saiyan and failing.

“I would officially be an adult in my culture, my…my parents would have been picking out a life mate for me.”

Bulma raised an eyebrow at him, finding it odd that he would even mention something like that. He never talked about his parents, never spoke a word about his past or the traditions of his species.

“Was your culture like that, no one got to choose their own partners?”

“Not exactly, most people could take any mate they wanted. I believe they often fought battles to prove their worth to the opposite gender, I don’t know,” he swallowed, fidgeting anxiously with the end of his tail in a way she had never seen him do before. He was having a hard time admitting something to her, and it was nearly painful to watch him come to terms with what he needed to say.

“The day I was born, entire cities…well, people all over the planet celebrated. The day of my birth was special, which in hindsight is pretty fucking stupid, now.”

Bulma stared at Vegeta in confusion, not understanding what he was saying, why would cities celebrate one child’s birth… _unless_ …

“What are you saying?”

“The reason Frieza stole me from my family wasn’t just because I was strong. I was a hostage, I- I was the heir to the Saiyan throne, the first-born son of the King and Queen of Vegetasei.”

Bulma stared at Vegeta in shock, trying to process the information he had admitted to her, wondering if it was some kind of bizarre joke- but clearly, the boy _wasn’t_ joking. He was dead serious.

“You… you were a _Prince_?” She asked stupidly, shaking her head in awe as he nodded, “and why were you taken as a hostage, how long ago?”

“To keep my species in line. I was five.”

Bulma looked down at her lap, her lips parted slightly and her eyes wide in surprise. Who would have ever thought…

“So, you’ve lived on this ship since you were five?”

“A few different ones, but always in space.”

God, that was _sad._

“And you were…you were going to be a _King_?”

“ _The_ King. My people were loyal to my father, the entire planet was unified,” Vegeta murmured in a faraway voice, and he still gripped the end of his tail in a childish way that Bulma didn’t care for. It wasn’t at all like him.

“Oh Vegeta, I… I’m sorry,” Bulma admitted, unable to come up with any other words. She looked back up at the Saiyan boy- _well_ , the Saiyan _man_ in front of her. He had told her he was an adult as of that day.

“I knew you’d act like this. Don’t pity me, I don’t need pity,” Vegeta hissed in subdued anger, looking down at his furred appendage, running his fingers through the plush fur in a seemingly soothing gesture. Bulma knew that he hated pity, hated any form of it- that he had nearly left their sanctuary one day when she had fussed over the wounds he had sustained in an earlier battle. They had gotten so mad at one another…

“Fine, I don’t pity you, then,” Bulma sighed, leaning her head back against the wall and wondering what Vegeta’s home planet had been like. Maybe she could get him to talk about it since he had admitted something so groundbreaking already.

“So, what was your home planet like? Do you remember?”

Vegeta looked up at her, his face a deadpan stare, but she knew the gears were turning. She could tell he was recalling the sights and smells of his world; knew that he was reliving the little moments that still lingered in his mind. 

-

“It was a desert planet, mostly. There were oceans and seas, vast brilliant turquoise waters… like the color of your hair. The sand was white, and the _trees_ \- they were like blackened hands jutting up out of the whiteness, topped with blood red canopies and white flowers. I remember the smell of those flowers like I was holding one of them in my hand now, but I haven’t experience a true scent quite like it since. The sky was pale… a blue-grey on normal days, I believe, and it turned bloody with sunsets that bled into the dark of night. We had three moons, and it was forbidden to look at them when they were full…

It was _hot_. Hot and dry, and the nights were cold and windy. My mother, brother and I would sometimes sit around bonfires outside the palace in the evenings, she would tell me stories of warriors and Gods, and stories of my father and his rise to become King of the Saiyans. I barely remeber any of them, just bits and pieces. My brother, he was just a baby and he would cry so often, it was infuriating…”

Vegeta swallowed, his face set in a longing stare as he continued. Speaking about it was painful, but it was also cathartic, and so he brought his foggy memories to life as Bulma sat forward, staring at him in wonder.

“The palace had gardens and they were full of plants and trees, and the ponds were stocked with exotic fish. I would crouch at the edge of the water and hunt them, kill and eat them raw- and my mother…” He laughed slightly, “She would get so mad, I believe they were valuable creatures, probably imported from off planet,” he smiled slightly, remembering ripping into the wriggling fish with his child’s teeth, eating the flesh before his mother could stop him.

“The city I lived in was huge, at least the way I remember it. The palace, it was a marvel, a massive structure that towered over the capital, and I would sit on the balcony outside of my room and watch the expanse before me. I rarely saw my father, but he would sometimes take me up in his arms tell me how all of it would have been mine someday- all of it and more. And I believed him. 

I don’t even remember their faces well now; their features are blurred to me.”

Vegeta exhaled, his voice trembling slightly at the end of his sentence, and despite himself, he glanced over at Bulma to see her reaction. She watched him with wide eyes before sitting back again, and she cleared her throat before speaking.

“It sounded like a beautiful place,” she whispered, and he could sense her sorrow, could tell that she mourned his planet with him. He couldn’t get mad though, not now. She may have pitied him, but she didn’t admit it, and this time, she mourned _with_ him- not just for him. 

-8-8-8-

“It’s gone…” Bulma trailed while lighting another cigarette, her nerves seeming to take over once again. Her hands shook, her voice trembled- and she looked distraught. He could see her worry lines furrow deeply under the streetlight, and he realized that she wasn’t as ageless as he first perceived her to be- she was still like him. Still aging, still marching on.

“What’s gone?” Vegeta asked quietly. He knew what she was going to say, but had her confirm it anyway, his heart sinking as she wiped tears from her eyes.

“Earth. Frieza purged it anyway, even though my father and I pledged ourselves to the empire to guarantee its safety. I mean, its still there- but every human that lived on it before- is gone. I…. heard it was sold to one of his species, some piece of shit who just needed _another_ vacation planet. They said it was a cheap one, though…barely worth Frieza’s time in the first place,” Bulma breathed, tears falling down her cheeks as Vegeta turned away. 

“It was only good for its polar caps. Everyone had to die because some Arcosian _motherfucker_ wanted the polar regions for a holiday.”

She had always been so excited to return to her planet, had looked forward to seeing her mother and her friends once again. Clearly, that hope had been extinguished with her species, and Vegeta knew exactly how painful that felt. 

They had both lost everything, and this time he mourned silently with her.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the first chapter illustration (just added tonight), on the first chapter of this story :)
> 
> A big thank you goes out to my beta reader [ HannaBellLecter!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HannaBellLecter/pseuds/HannaBellLecter)\- and thank all of you for reading! <3


	3. Blurred Horizon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two lonely souls can't resist reconnecting.

**B** ulma finished off her cigarette in silence, her eyes stinging with tears that rolled down her cheeks before she took a deep breath and had enough of it. Tears wouldn’t change a damn thing but the position of the mascara she wore- and she knew it was probably running down her face as she wiped at them with the back of her hand.

Damn it, she didn’t want to go home alone. She couldn’t handle the thought of walking through her door to an empty room, couldn’t handle the deafening silence or the upstairs tenants either fucking or fighting- couldn’t stand the thought of Vegeta being in the same city and not in the same room. They didn’t have to have sex… but she wasn’t going to fool herself. The night would likely culminate with the both of them in her bed- and that would be okay.

“Hey…do you want to come up to my place?” Bulma finally asked, leaning back against stone blocks, relishing the warmth they held onto even so late into the night. The Saiyan didn’t answer immediately, and Bulma’s stomach began to sink as he took one last drag off his spent cigarette, throwing it into a nearby drain.

“Yeah, whatever,” he finally managed, his arms crossed and his head down as if he were in deep thought- probably considering the situation. It would lead to nothing but heartache, she knew, but she couldn’t deny him. Couldn’t even dream of going home without him…

-

He wasn’t surprised when she asked him to come home with her, he wasn’t even entirely excited by the prospect- he knew it would be nothing but trouble in the long run. But he couldn’t deny her, or deny her bed- he just _couldn’t_ , and so Vegeta agreed to follow her.

She wasn’t shitting him when she told him she lived next door to the bar, in fact, the building that they had been standing in front of was that of her apartment complex. They walked in silence through the door, and he watched as she put in a PIN code for the elevator, which took them to the eighteenth floor. Bulma reached for his arm on the short trip up, and though he hesitated at first, he allowed her to grab onto it, lacing her delicate fingers around his bicep as they exited the lift. 

She had sometimes grabbed his arm and walked with him in the past, and he never questioned her then and didn’t plan to now. He assumed it was some sort of bizarre human custom, and so he walked with her as she led him halfway down the hall, the aura of her scent as perfect as he remembered from so long ago. He wanted to bury his nose in her hair, wanted to taste her skin…her lips… _gods_. He likely would be soon, and he couldn’t help the jolt of excitement at the thought of bedding her… he hated the thrill but needed it. 

_He needed her tonight…_

Bulma let go of his arm, pressing her open palm against the metal pad above the handle, and it quickly unlocked after registering her handprint. She opened the door slowly, as if she were reluctant to let him past the threshold, and she gave him a sheepish smile before flipping the lights on.

“It’s a fucking mess, you know me…” she trailed, and Vegeta raised an eyebrow. It was an updated one-bedroom flat, consisting of a living room and kitchen combined, presumably with a bedroom and bathroom through the door in the middle. It was cluttered all to hell, but It smelled _okay_ ; the place was in need of a good disinfecting but overall it smelled of her- and at least that was good. 

Bulma kicked off her heels and rushed to the couch, throwing a pile of clothes to a chair which already had another mound of clothes stacked on it, and he bit back a grin as she pushed shit back on her coffee table, making room for the drinks she inevitably planned to place there.

“Have a sit! A seat!” she corrected herself with a nervous laugh, strangely edgy as she fluttered off to the kitchen in the small apartment. He obeyed her without complaint and sat with his arms folded, watching her in the kitchen bending over to retrieve something from her cabinet, her panties nearly visible as she searched. Damned woman… _fuck._  

“I don’t have much up here, but I’ve got some _j’hie_. That okay?”

“Yeah that’s fine,” Vegeta mumbled, watching her ass move as she pulled out two glasses, filling them halfway with ice before pouring the indigo-colored _j’hie_ over the cubes. He could smell the potent drink wafting in from the kitchen, his mouth nearly watering at the heady scent as she came padding through the living room with a smile, ice clinking as she held a drink in each hand. It reminded him of a time long ago…

“This is the good stuff, I got it for a friend and she ended up being transferred… so I kept it for myself.”

Vegeta took a swig of the ichor, his eyes narrowing as the bizarre textured liquid washed down his throat, and he exhaled deeply.

“That _is_ the good shit…” he managed, giving Bulma a side-eye as she grinned. 

“It has such a good taste, right?” she answered quietly, taking her own long swig, seeming as if she were deep in thought and ready to down the whole glass in one go. She was nervous, and her actions proved that. _But why?_

-8-8-8-

Vegeta would never forget the time he had smuggled alcohol onto the _deific_ , had wanted to down the whole bottle so that Raditz and Nappa wouldn’t harass him for it- but he had decided to save it. Hidden it under his mattress until his next meeting with Bulma. 

He wasn’t sure how she would take it, wasn’t entirely sure that he should even bring it to her- but ultimately, he wanted to share the rarity with her. It was a stupid sentiment, but he couldn’t help himself.

Thankfully she had been excited, grabbing the dark bottle out of his hands and watching the liquid swirl within the confines of the glass, and he cocked an eyebrow at her.

“So easily amused.”

“ _Shut up_ , I’ve never had alcohol, have you?”

“Yes,” he lied, crossing his arms over his chest as she sat down on her cushioned crate. She didn’t need to know that he hadn’t. He wanted to seem more mature than that...

“What kind is this? This is alien writing, I can’t read it…” Bulma trailed, squinting her eyes at the alien words on the bottle. Vegeta couldn’t read it either, but he knew it was a popular drink called _j’hie_.

“It’s called _j’hie_.

“ _Ohh_ , I like the way that sounds. I don’t think we should have much, do you?” she had laughed, fumbling with the lid unsuccessfully. Vegeta rolled his eyes at her, grabbing the bottle and twisting the cap as easily as snapping his fingers. Bulma gave him a nasty look and he handed the bottle back to her, watching her carefully as she tested the smell of the _j’hie_.

“It smells terrible, _god_ …” she trailed, wrinkling up her nose as he gave her the slightest grin. It did smell bad, it smelled absolutely fucking _awful_ , and yet he was excited to take a swig- figure out why the poison was so sought after. 

“Take a drink,” he murmured, and she made a face before placing her lips on the rim of the bottle and gingerly took a swig. Bulma pulled back from her sip, her face contorted in disgust as she shoved the bottle at Vegeta, and he grabbed it, taking a long drink just to impress her. He regretted it immediately, somewhat shocked at the burning sensation sliding down his throat. 

“It’s awful isn’t it?”

“It’s…not _that_ bad,” he lied, keeping a deadpan face despite the fact it was absolutely the worst shit he had ever tasted in his eighteen years. Bulma made a face, reaching one skinny arm out for the bottle once again.

“If you can take a drink like that, then so can I,” she sighed, and Vegeta gave her a dry laugh as he handed the vile liquid back to her.

-

Bulma turned the _j’hie_ up, holding her nose as she downed a drink she felt worthy of Vegeta’s previous deep swig. She swallowed reluctantly, shivering at the burn that made its way into her belly and held the rest out to the Saiyan with a sick smile. Vegeta genuinely laughed at her, taking his turn with the same resolve as before, and then Bulma followed suit- she would be damned before being unable to keep up with him.

She needed to prove to herself that she could stand just as much of the drink as the Saiyan boy, and it wasn’t long before she had started feeling lightheaded. She wondered if he was feeling the same way too, wondered if he would lighten up a little…

-8-8-8-

Bulma sat down near Vegeta, and she looked over at him as she took another long drink of the _j’hie_. She had worked herself up, overthinking their encounter, nervous and excited by what the night could- _would_ , hold.

“It’s a lot better than the stuff we had back in the day…” she trailed, watching him nod as he swirled the dark liquid in the ice.

“I was an idiot for smuggling that in,” Vegeta grinned to himself, glancing up at Bulma for a moment before looking back down at his drink with a blank stare.

“But we had fun. Our first sip of alcohol seems so trivial now- but back then we thought it was something,” Bulma grinned over the rim of her cup before taking another drink. The alcohol would surely calm her down. She never got so flustered like this with anyone else- _never_ , and she felt like an idiot. It was only because it was _him_ that she felt like such a foolish, giddy girl again.

Vegeta didn’t answer her, but she saw the slight grin on his face as he remembered their time together so long ago, buzzed on the little bottle of _J’hie_. It was the same night that he had gotten bold enough to kiss her…

-8-8-8-

Vegeta felt his head spinning, over half of the bottle was gone and he knew that he was an idiot for allowing himself to drink so much. He needed to keep his wits about him, needed to remember that they were never going to be safe on the _deific-_ and needed to not feel so damn good in such a dangerous place. He wanted more, though, despite the danger and the taste, so he took one last swig before calling his last. 

He leant over to sit the remainder of the bottle on the floor, lingering a moment when she had bent down to grab at it, and they had stared at each other, their faces only inches away and her scent filling his nose as his heart leapt. They were close enough to kiss…

He had never had the nerve to do it before, had denied her subtle advances out of fear of losing track of his surroundings- but now he didn’t really give a shit, and he threw caution to the wind. Out of the two years they had been meeting, they had never been discovered by anyone that mattered, and he wanted to know what her lips felt like on his…

Vegeta caught Bulma’s arm with one hand, taking her off guard as he placed his lips on hers, and she stiffened slightly before realizing what had happened. He didn’t know what the fuck he was doing but he knew that she didn’t either, and so he improvised, dropping to his knees in front of her to gain better access to her kiss.

-

He had kissed her…. _actually_ kissed her. She had been absolutely shocked when his stubble had pressed against her lips, it had taken her completely off guard and her heart had made its way nearly to her throat as she kissed him back for the very first time.

Bulma knew that seventeen was damned old for a first kiss, and she had never dreamed that it would have happened in a dingy, poorly lit storage room with the taste of alien liquor on her lips- but she wouldn’t have had it any other way. It was exhilarating, it was long awaited, and it was perfect.

He had never been bold enough to kiss her before, although she had hinted at it - but it had just never happened. Who knew that all it would take was a little liquor to break the ice? She would have tried to get her hands on some a long time ago if she had only known… 

Bulma’s heart nearly beat out of her chest and butterflies replaced her innards as she cautiously slipped her tongue into his mouth, but he was the one to startle this time. She thought he was going to pull away before he finally reciprocated, following her lead with his own tongue and running his bare hands gingerly up her arms, touching her hair softly, running his fingers through her silky locks as Bulma wrapped her arms around his shoulders.  

They continued slowly as Bulma’s music played softly on their crate table, bathed in a pale glow as they experienced their first buzz and first kiss. She didn’t quite want to stop at the simple kiss, but Vegeta never made the move- and she wouldn’t push him. She knew he was awkward about such things, knew it would possibly ruin the magic of their first kiss, and so she enjoyed the moment- knowing it would be one that she would never, ever forget.

-8-8-8-

Vegeta turned his cup up, finishing off the _j’hie_ and taking a deep breath before turning to Bulma. She leant forward to put her own empty glass on the table and he ground his teeth, wondering if it was the alcohol making him give in to his feelings for her or the fact that he was likely losing his mind. He leaned into her, catching her arm and startling her somewhat as he pulled her toward him, confidently, so damned sure of himself- unlike so many years ago.

He had been cautious then, his confidence only fueled by the little bit of liquor running through his veins- but now he nearly slammed his mouth on hers, catching her shoulders and running his hands down her body, wanting to feel every curve under his bare hands. Their mouths tasted the same, laced in _j’hie_ \- bringing back vivid memories amidst the growing lust in the present, and he pushed into her- forcing her back onto the couch as she folded her arms around his broad shoulders.

Vegeta hovered over Bulma, his heart hammering as he pressed his hips into hers, his cock stiffening against her as he bit at her lower lip, tracing his tongue on her lips, dominating their kiss as she made needy, mewling sounds and wrapping her legs around his taut waist. Vegeta couldn’t help himself as he rubbed his growing erection against her, quickly realizing this was the most alive he had felt in a goddamn decade.

He didn’t just want to get off, go back to his shithole hotel and drink himself to sleep- it was more than that. He wanted to experience her for the first time, wanted to know what it was like to have sex with someone who actually gave a fuck about him- someone he cared for as well… and that part was terrifying.

He was experiencing an emotion he wasn’t sure of, one that was startling and exciting and new. When he thought about it, though, he felt that it _wasn’t_ new, it was a feeling that had just been revived- and it scared the shit out of him just as much as it spurred him on. It was a fondness, possibly something like _love_ that he hadn’t known he had been capable of and hadn’t felt since the last time he had been with her so long ago…

-

Bulma laid back and let Vegeta take control, she was surprised and thrilled by his dominance- at his willingness to touch her now that he had decided to let himself go with her. She moaned as he moved away from her lips, tracing his teeth along her jawline, nipping and kissing until he reached her neck and growled low into her ear, causing her skin to tingle before he sat up on his knees. 

Bulma watched him with hooded eyes as he ran his hands up under the stretchy fabric of her dress, his tail flicking as he grabbed the hem of her panties, pulling them down and off of her legs as he handled her gently, expertly, as if he had done this a thousand times before. It was a sad thought, really, since she had always thought that they should have been each other’s first- discovering each other for the first time, possibly even be each other’s only partners in life... but she had to let bygones be bygones, that was history, and this was the present. She wanted to savor every second as the man that she had never stopped loving showed her pleasure that she had been denied for fifteen years. 

-

Despite the fact that his muscles were screaming at him to take it easy- he knew he had to taste her, had to make her squirm, needed to give her a good lick as he threw her little black panties over his shoulder carelessly. Bulma sighed as he settled in between her legs with a slight groan, kissing, nipping and breathing heated breaths against her inner thigh as he made his way to her core. She did squirm, and he grinned against her leg before teasing her folds, breathing slowly, licking her gently, spreading her lips with two fingers before running his tongue to her nub and tracing its borders as she panted needy whimpers above.

He held out a moment more, teasing her until she ran her fingers through his thick hair and begged him- _demanded_ that he give her what she needed- and he willingly obliged, lapping at her swollen bud steadily, relishing in her sent and taste as she flat out moaned- careless of her neighbors’ ears as she grabbed onto his hair- kneading and pulling gently as he bathed her with his tongue.

His abs and neck muscles throbbed in pain, but it was worth it for her…

-

Bulma was in pure ecstasy, never in her lifetime would she have imagined that Vegeta, of all people, would be so astute in pleasuring a woman. He had definitely had experience, and again, she let that slip from her mind as he pushed her quickly to the edge. There was no way she was going to be able to control her body, or hold out on her rapture as he licked, sucked and nipped her bud to climax.

So, she let herself succumb, her body melting into ecstasy as she trembled against his mouth, lights flashing as her form filled with a swirling, heated pleasure that altered her reality for several moments. And then she came down, cheeks flushed and forehead sweating slightly as her reality came to, and she exhaled, letting go of Vegeta’s hair and hoping she hadn’t tugged too hard.

-

Vegeta pushed Bulma’s dress up past her hips and bare breasts, pulling it over her head as she held her arms up for him with a coy grin. She had quite enjoyed his mouth, and he decided it was time to enjoy her as well.

He dropped her dress, staring at her body silently in the pale light coming from the scattered lamps, and he realized that she was the most gorgeous creature he had ever witnessed. She was more beautiful than he could have ever imagined, a woman with perfect curves and supple breasts- a woman that any hot-blooded man would be insane to deny.

And he realized that he wasn’t so insane, that he had some life and pursuit of happiness left in him still as he stripped down to his bare chest, throwing his chest plate and fabric armor to the floor with her dress. He didn’t want to take her on the couch, he wanted to have her on her bed, so he lifted her to his chest, kissing her deeply as he relished the feel of her soft breasts on the hardness of his torso. 

Vegeta stood with her easily, carrying her to the only door inside her apartment, pushing it open to reveal a darkened bedroom. He held her against the wall a moment, pressing his restrained, throbbing cock against the wetness of her core, groaning as she kissed his neck, ready to fuck her then and there before backing up and laying her on the bed. He needed to slow down, to savor her.

She watched him, her eyes glittering from the low light creeping in through the doorway as he removed his pants, releasing his cock before crawling up over her, his breaths coming in heated pants as he stared at her, running one hand across the side of her face and into her hair as she sighed, gently kissing his cheek when he lowered his head to the crook of her neck.

He began to speak, trying to come up with the right words to say- knowing that anything he would utter would sound fucking stupid; and so, he remained silent, kissing her below her ear before pushing himself up on his arms and pressing his hips into hers, his heart racing as well as his mind.

He had waited for this for so long, had only dreamed of her despite their many lonely years apart. No matter the woman, he had always longed for Bulma. And now, here she was below him, running her hands through his hair and staring him in the eyes like nothing had ever changed between them.

Nothing had changed, and yet everything was different.

Everything was different, but he had always loved her…

-

Bulma waited with bated breath as Vegeta reached down, silently placing himself at her soaking borderline. She had thought he was going to speak, could see something left unsaid in his eyes before he continued- and even though he didn’t end up speaking, she thought she knew what he meant to say.

He had waited for this moment for years as well.

She felt like she was in a dream, that it was another fantasy that she would wake up from- bleary-eyed and half-forgotten. But when he entered her, she quickly came back to the present, exhaling the slightest moan as pleasure once again flooded her body, his girth filling her out and leaving her nearly whimpering into his arm. She grabbed onto his biceps, squeezing tightly as he began to thrust, gently at first and then building up as she moaned. 

-

Vegeta bucked into her, forgetting about the pain in his muscles, letting all of that fade away as he panted above her, his heart thumping and his mind free. He watched her below him, felt her grip his arms, felt her all around his girth as he made love to her for the first time.

The Saiyan wrapped his tail around Bulma’s left leg as he lowered himself to meet her lips, kissing her, forgetting his worries, letting go of his failures and remembering what it felt like to grasp onto hope as he ran his fingers through her hair while she panted his name. 

It was surreal, but it was no dream. She wasn’t some distant memory of happiness that he had long ago tried to forget. Dreaming had only brought him disappointment, knowing he could never see her again had gotten him nowhere. Knowing that this night would end- _well_ , he could think of that later.

He would live again, if only for the night. 

-8-8-8-

Vegeta had pulled away from her, his cheeks flushed, his mind flustered as Bulma stared at him with a sheepish grin and bee-stung lips. He had actually _kissed_ her. 

It was a stupid thing to do, it was even more stupid that he was riding a buzz that could get them both in trouble- he hadn’t even thought of keeping an ear out, constantly trying to sense danger as usual- he had forgotten it all when he had placed his lips on hers.

The Saiyan sat back on his crate, high on stupid endorphins and ashamed of his actions. He couldn’t be so careless again- it would get them caught… it would get her stationed off ship, or him punished and sent away- or any number of shitty scenarios that he didn’t want to think of. He needed to remain faultless, needed to keep up his quota so that he could rank up; he needed to get stronger. He would gain power through training, work harder than ever, and one day he would end the empire…

_And he would take her as his mate._

It should have been the last thing on his mind. He had no reason to be worrying about one woman, had no business to be thinking about her as much as he did- _but_ _he did_. He felt a fondness for the human girl that he had never felt for any other being in his whole existence. 

And if he wanted any of his dreams to come true, Vegeta sure as shit couldn’t get caught with her on the _Deific_. He just couldn’t let that happen.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thank you goes out to my beta reader/editor [ HannaBellLecter!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HannaBellLecter/pseuds/HannaBellLecter)\- and thank all of you for reading! <3


	4. Heart Lines | Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lovers part and a reunion is lost. 
> 
> Vegeta makes a radical decision while Bulma is left with little more than hope.

They made love, a quick thing, both of them too excited and too high on one another to last long. Vegeta came hard, spilling his seed into Bulma as his body took on a state of rapture that consumed him, set him free if only for a moment, and when he came-to he was panting over her form as his sweat dripped onto her belly.

He had stared at her breathlessly in the low light, and she had smiled at him sweetly, sweat on her own brow from their quick session. He slowly pulled out of her and lifted her up for a long, heated kiss, and she wrapped her arms around him tightly.

Vegeta had never known what love was…but this had to have been what it felt like. He had never felt such an all-consuming fascination for another woman, a certain fondness for Bulma that he could never hold for any other. He loved her and would never admit it, but he could show her.

And so, he did, tangling himself back up with the woman, making up for all the kisses lost as he covered her with them and tasted her mouth, became intimate with it before they made love again, slowly and passionately deep into the night. -

And then the dawn came.

Bulma had woken up with her alarm, bleary-eyed as the dawning light crept through her blinds. She didn’t find Vegeta beside her, but instead he was at the end of the bed, staring out the narrow slats in consternation.

“What’s wrong Vegeta, couldn’t you sleep?” She yawned, stretching her arms, willing him to come back to them. She had to work but she didn’t want to miss a single minute that she could have with the Saiyan.

Vegeta gave her a sideways glance, running his hand over his face as she watched him, and she wanted more than anything to know what was going through his head. It was hard to say with Vegeta…

“I have to leave,” he replied, his tail twitching as he continued to avoid her gaze. She knew he would have to go, but she hoped it wouldn’t have been so soon…

“Today, tonight?”

“Today, in a few hours. I assume you’ll be at work.”

Bulma nodded slowly, her heart sinking in her chest when she thought of him leaving… being gone from her life again. How long this time? A few months… another fifteen years?

“When…will you-”

“As soon as I can,” Vegeta interrupted her, looking at her, his dark eyes full of a quiet sincerity as she gave him the slightest smile.

“You promise you’ll come back?”

“Yes, I… I promise,” he answered her honestly, and she grinned as he rubbed the back of his neck. At least he could promise her that much… at least she knew she would see him again.

“Shower with me then?” Bulma winked as he showed her the slightest of grins, and Bulma jumped from her sheets playfully, wrapping her arms around the Saiyan’s broad shoulders and kissing him deeply as he reciprocated, twining his tail around her arm as they embraced in the morning light.

-

Vegeta could chalk shower sex up as a first. What had started out as her bathing him and rubbing his skin down with soap quickly became her stroking his growing length with bubbly water. He moaned quietly, the roar of the shower drowning out his needy groans as Bulma finally rinsed his skin and dropped to her knees in front of him.

_Fuck._

She stroked his shaft as she wrapped her lips around his cock, a rapturous feeling he had never experienced before, and the woman took her damn time too, licking and sucking, driving him mad with every bob of her head. He breathed deeply, relishing the pleasure of her warm and wanton mouth as his ugly hand slid behind her head, holding it lightly as she worked him, his mind growing distant and hazy as she threatened to finish him off before he suddenly came-to. He wasn’t about to leave her with a mouthful of his seed… he needed to pleasure her as well.

Vegeta lifted the woman up and easily sat her down on his cock, and her walls squeezing down onto the girth of it nearly took his breath away. Bulma wrapped her legs around him as she moaned, panting his name as he thrusted into her with abandon, losing himself to her once again as if it were going to be the very last time.

“Vegeta, ah! _Vegeta_!” she moaned as he traced his teeth along her neck, and he panted into her flesh, knowing that it just couldn’t be the last time. Not when she was the only thing that had brought him to life after so many years…

-

“Bulma…” Vegeta breathed, his body tensing and his breathing becoming ragged as he came into her, and she followed suit as his hot seed filled her up. Her climax was as good as the first few with him, a rush of mutual chemistry that brought her more pleasure than she had ever had before. She had never loved anyone she had fucked before…had never truly _made love_ until him.

Bulma quivered around the Saiyan’s cock, her mind fading to a dark pink flush as she left the plane of existence for just a fleeting moment of rapture, and when she came to he was watching her, his dark eyes half-lidded with fascination.

“Ah, Vegeta,” Bulma smiled softly as she panted, and he pressed his forehead to hers as the water beat down on both of them, slowly going lukewarm as they embraced in the roaring silence.

-

Their goodbye was short-lived, as Bulma rushed to finish getting ready to go to her forced profession. She kissed Vegeta deeply and told him to lock up… and afterwards she wished that she had told him that she loved him.

Bulma rode the Aerobus to work wondering why she hadn’t professed her feelings, cursing herself as the public vehicle made its multiple stops on its way to the compound that Bulma worked at. She didn’t notice any of the faces as the aliens took seats next to her, didn’t register the many voices as they chattered around her, and she glared out of the window distantly as her mind raced.

Her friend, her Saiyan had _really_ appeared in her life once again, and she couldn’t quite believe the astronomical odds of seeing Vegeta after so many years apart. It was like finding a needle in a haystack, or one Saiyan in an infinitely vast universe.

And _ah_ , they had made love…multiple times. Bulma had feared that having sex with him was going to cheapen their bond, but it had the opposite effect; she felt closer to him than ever before.

She smiled to herself, thinking of his many kisses and his promise to return to her. It was really going to be a great day.

-

Vegeta slept fitfully as his vessel traveled through the stars, and he dreamed not of the previous night and the rekindled relationship with Bulma, but oddly of how their relationship had abruptly ended so long ago.

-8-8-8-

Vegeta had gotten a bad feeling about the next clandestine meeting after his first kiss with Bulma. Things were just going too well, everything was just too… _perfect_. They had been meeting for just over two years without issue, and despite his typical caution being thrown to the wind from the alcohol he and Bulma shared, they hadn’t been caught. Nothing had happened…which raised a red flag for Vegeta.

Against his better judgment, Vegeta shrugged off his churning gut feeling and made his way to their little nook, the stale smelling destitute room that they had made their own over time. The young Saiyan trekked his way through the narrow hall in silence, turning the corner, nearly holding his breath as he expected to walk into something terrible - but he found nothing out of the ordinary. It was just as they had left it.

And yet, he couldn’t fight off the uneasy feeling building deep within his gut.

The young Saiyan waited, checking the time on his scouter, counting down the seconds as he glanced toward the door. He waited impatiently for the girl to enter with a big grin and some sort of offering, a gift of candy or something she had managed to find that she thought he would enjoy - when she did enter…

With a pale green hand on her mouth and throat.

_Zarbon… gods…_

Vegeta’s hackles raised on his wrapped tail and he stood immediately, assuming a fighting stance as his heart pounded in his chest. _This couldn’t be happening…_

“Seriously, Vegeta, what do you actually think _you_ are going to do to _me_?” Zarbon cackled, letting go of Bulma’s whimpering mouth as she struggled, tears flowing freely down her face. _Oh…Bulma_. He should have never left his room - should have forgotten the girls kiss and had given her up so long ago… not for himself, but for her sake.

“Let her go, Zarbon,” Vegeta growled, lowering his stance in vain, hoping against hope that it would appease Frieza’s most beloved henchman enough to do as the Saiyan bid.

“Oh no, no, _no_. Why would I do that? I’m taking this little girl right up to Frieza, let him know exactly where she was heading and who she was going to meet! You can join her if you’d like, or not. Frieza will discipline you either way, monkey,” Zarbon sniggered, narrowing his eyes at Vegeta as the boy grit his teeth in desperate anger. What in the hells was he going to do to help her? He had nothing…no power, no leverage… if he tried to fight Zarbon he would be killed, or worse - Bulma would be…

“Fine,” Vegeta swallowed, looking Bulma in the eyes as she cried. She hadn’t said one word the entire time, had only whimpered and gasped as she wept… such a pitiful creature. He should have been angry at her for being so weak and pathetic, but he could only feel her desperation and helplessness. Their actions wouldn’t come without dire repercussions; Vegeta was the emperor’s whipping boy after all.

Vegeta became more and more angry as he watched Zarbon hustle the girl through the halls, making sure to give her a hard time just to irritate the Saiyan boy further. Vegeta tried to come up with plans for escape - illusions in which he murdered Zarbon and Frieza and the whole fucking empire just to keep Bulma safe… but when it came right down to it, he knew he was outclassed, outnumbered and powerless. Whatever was going to happen, _would_ happen - and there wasn’t a godsdamn thing he could do about it.

-

Bulma knew they were done for. The green asshole had jumped out and caught her as she made her way to meet Vegeta in the storage room through the cargo hold, and now he held her arm in a vicelike grip, causing her to trip up and laughing at her the whole while as he manhandled her up to the emperor’s throne room. She knew there was nothing she or Vegeta could do to rectify the situation, and whatever they were dealt they would have to accept with humility… and it could mean one or both of their lives.

Bulma prayed to the cosmos that Vegeta wouldn’t die in front of her, prayed that she wouldn’t die either, prayed that somehow they would both be safe. She held her breath as the doors to the lizard’s throne room were thrown open to reveal the back of the emperors floating throne as he faced the black void of space through the enormous round window in the back of the room.

“My liege, have I ever caught a couple of scoundrels for you!” Zarbon barked, tossing Bulma roughly to the floor in front of the hovering throne. Bulma hit the cold marble tile on her elbow and side, and she gasped as sharp pain wracked through her body. She knew, however, that she would be lucky if she only got out of the situation with some bruises…

Vegeta made his way to Bulma before being stopped by Zarbon, who grabbed the boy’s tail and jerked him back with a derisive shake of his green-maned head and a nasty smirk. Bulma held her breath as Vegeta bared his teeth at the man - fearing the boy would strike and be beaten down - but the Saiyan simply stood beside of Zarbon with his arms crossed tightly, his face as red as a beet as the green alien held onto the Saiyan’s tail like it was a leash.

“Well _well_ , what sort of rascals have you brought me today Zarbon?” Frieza turned his throne slowly, his face set in a wicked grin before he clapped his hands together in delight, “Oh! A _monkey_ and a blue-haired little whore! How delightful!”

Bulma leaned herself up on her arms painfully, staring at the emperor in horror as he looked from her to Vegeta. The Saiyan glanced down at Bulma, his eyes too wide and wild, his anger and nerves very apparent as the Emperor once again spoke to gain their attention.

“Vegeta, you must have forgotten your manners, boy- _bow_ ,” Frieza crooned, grinning as Zarbon grabbed Vegeta’s hair and forced him to his knees. Zarbon backhanded the unflinching boy across the face, busting his lip and causing a trickle of blood to creep over his flesh as he glared up at the tyrant on the throne above him. Fresh tears welled up in Bulma’s eyes as her friend, her could-be boyfriend and proud prince was manhandled and disgraced, all because of _her_. If she hadn’t gotten so careless maybe none of this would have happened…

“That’s much better, now, girl…” Frieza turned to Bulma who had scrambled onto her knees in a bow similar to Vegeta’s, and he grinned once more, “What was your name again? Something outlandish if I recall correctly.”

“Bulma Briefs,” she answered as confidently as she could, her heart hammering wildly as she kept eye contact with the wicked man, noticing for the first time that his eyes were truly the color of blood.

“Yes, outlandish indeed. An ugly name for a pretty girl- and you should know that such a pretty, intelligent girl shouldn’t spoil herself with a monkey. Don’t be fooled by his claims to royalty, his planet and birthright are ashes floating around in the void now.”

Frieza gave a dramatic flourish of his hand as he glanced over at a fuming Vegeta, then turned once again to interrogate Bulma.

“So, what do you have to say for yourself, _Bulma_?”

“We were just friends, we just met to talk…”

“To TALK?” Frieza nearly screamed, throwing his head back in laughter, “To talk!? Oh, that’s just grand! You wretched little children.”

Frieza continued laughing as Bulma’s nerves got the best of her, there was no way she could stop the stinging flood of tears any longer, and they came rolling out in streams, running down her face and pattering on the slick tile below. Something terrible was going to happen…

“Alright, I’ve got other issues to tend to, you two go off to your _respective_ rooms- and I better not hear a peep about either of you again! Zarbon take the monkey to his dorm; Dodoria show the girl to hers.”

 _What? Send us to our rooms?_ Frieza wasn’t known for his leniency… something was very wrong.

Bulma shot a glance at Vegeta, but the Saiyan only stared dumbfounded at the emperor above.

“Vegeta, don’t look at me like that, you’re going to catch bugs in that gaping mouth of yours,” Frieza grinned once more before throwing his arm up in dismissal. Bulma stood to her shaking knees, watching as Zarbon let go of Vegeta’s hair and allowing him to stand.

Vegeta locked worried eyes with Bulma, but their moment was broken by the snapping of green fingers in front of the boy’s face.

“Let’s go, monkey,” Zarbon hissed, seemingly irritated by the emperor’s decision to let the two go without true punishment, and he elbowed Vegeta out of the vast room as Bulma watched helplessly.

Dodoria strolled over to Bulma’s side, his face bored as he motioned for the girl to move. She obeyed, nearly running out of the throne room and glancing down the hall, catching one last glimpse of Vegeta before Zarbon took him around the corner.

“Forget him, little bastard won’t ever amount to anything around here,” Dodoria mumbled, grabbing Bulma’s shoulder and guiding her toward the elevator on the other end of the hall. Bulma ignored the big pink alien, her mind racing with outcomes and scenarios that would never befall the two.

She could never plan to run away with Vegeta, she would never know the horror of seeing him killed before her- little did either of them know that being brought before Frieza would be the very last time either of them would see one another for nearly fifteen years.

Out of all the negative scenarios that played in her head, never seeing the Saiyan again hadn’t even crossed her mind.

-8-8-8-

Bulma laid her head on the warm window of the Aerobus, ignoring the chattering and coming and going of people around her as the bus transported her to her destination just outside of the city. All she could think of was the last day that she had seen Vegeta, the time before- when they had stared at each other, ten feet apart and unable to speak before they were led out separate ways, to travel detached paths for what felt like an eternity.

It might as well have been.

In the grand scheme of things, fifteen years was the blink of an eye, but to Bulma, it had been a living hell… but it seemed like Vegeta had gotten the worst end of the deal by far. He had seemed so broken, beaten and jaded, covered in scars and the defiant light in his eyes lost. If it hadn’t been for his unique shock of black hair she might not have even recognized him in that damned bar.

But he had come back to life, if only for a short time while he was with her that night. She longed to see that light again- ached to feel his bronze skin against hers once more, needed to feel the comfort that only he could bring to her. And she would count down the days impatiently until he could return.

-

Six months had passed, planets had been purged, and Vegeta had made for sure that he and his idiot subordinates would stop on the dusty red manufacturing planet that Bulma resided on; he had set the coordinates specifically for her. He had longed for the woman, had craved her like the strong alcohol that she had poured for them the night they had lain together- he desperately needed to taste her on his lips once more. She had brought him back to life, had given him something to look forward to, a reason to hope - and he was finally coming back to her.

Vegeta hadn’t been able to contact Bulma because of the scrambled communication system on her planet. He wasn’t much for chatting, but it would have been nice to hear her voice, to know she was real and not some laced fantasy he had conjured up after drinking some bad booze.

He knew that wasn’t true though.

He could smell her on his clothes for days afterward, dreaming of her as he traveled in a cramped pod through space… and even now he could pick up the faintest trace of her scent still lingering in the padded walls of the spherical ship as he made his way back to her. She was _real_ , she was his again and he would be seeing her _so_ soon…

-

The sun was setting as Vegeta made his way down the mostly empty downtown streets. The Aerocars passed with a whirring buzz, and the bars turned on their neon lights, inviting the lonely, bored patrons that frequented them for socializing after working a tedious job the entire day. Bulma was one of them - although she wasn’t on the planet by her own volition.

The people he did cross paths with gave him a wide berth, intimidated by his armor and species, and it made his mood even better as he got closer and closer to his destination. She would be there, she would be waiting, he would feel her skin under his again… speak with her, couple with her and sleep in her bed, surrounded by her delicious scent. And this time he had a few days, a few days off to wrap himself up with her. With any luck, she would have some time off too.

He finally made it to the impossibly tall apartment complex, the one in front of the nightclub he had found her in, and he wasn’t sure whether to look for her there first or go up to her apartment. The wretched music was already thumping in the bar, so Vegeta quickly decided to make his way up to her apartment to avoid it. The elevator required a pin number, but the stairs didn’t, so he made his way easily up eighteen flights, not even breaking a sweat when he exited on her floor.

Vegeta was hoping she was there, he was aching to breathe in her scent, to witness her smile. He could nearly taste her on his lips as he neared her door, and he lifted his gloved hand to knock, tapping instead of pounding on the metal as to not scare her…

And the door opened, revealing an ugly, sallow-skinned alien woman smoking a cigarette.

_Who was this? What the fuck was going on?_

“Who are you?” Vegeta spat, wondering why this person was in his Bulma’s apartment. He glanced inside, noticing the furniture was all different, everything had been changed…

“You came to my door buddy, just who the fuck are you?” the long-snouted woman growled, blinking her many beady eyes in unison at the confused Saiyan before her. Vegeta glanced at the door number, confirming for sure that it had been Bulma’s apartment…

“How long have you lived here?”

“About four months…”

“What happened to the tenant before you, where is she?”

“How would I know, what the hell is all this anyway? What’s going on?

“I was… looking for someone…” Vegeta trailed uneasily, turning away from the alien and heading back towards the stairs. Something was very wrong…

-

The club was lit up with pink and turquoise lights, the perfumed smoke that lingered in the air burnt his nose and the alcohol made his mouth water- but he wasn’t there to drown himself. Vegeta was there to find the woman, _his_ woman, Bulma Briefs- surely, she was still in the city, that she hadn’t gone anywhere…or had been transferred anywhere. That would be a problem.

Vegeta walked up to the counter, waiting for a bartender as his stomach began to sink. If he couldn’t find her here, then where could she be? The universe was a big fucking place…

“What can I get ya’,” a stout, ruddy-skinned alien asked, standing up on a stool to better serve the patrons. Vegeta ordered a Dawnstar and waited for it to be served up before asking questions. It was typically easier to get information after the passing of money.

“Here ya’ go, is that all?” the bartender asked, scanning Vegeta’s credit chip and handing it back to the Saiyan with clawed fingers.

“No, actually,” Vegeta started, downing his shot and relishing the flicker of heat in is chest, “do you remember a woman, not a Saiyan - but close, with blue hair and eyes, no tail?”

“Aye, yeah Blue. She was in here a lot, don’t remember the name, we all just called her Blue. She stopped coming around some months ago.”

Vegeta’s stomach sank. Shit. _Shit._

“Do you know what happened to her?”

“Ahh, there was some sort of changes or something’ at the factory, not sure exactly what happened to her though. Lots of people sent off planet, some top-secret thing as always. You know how it goes.”

Vegeta did in fact, knew how it went. Bulma didn’t have a choice, and now she was gone. _Again._

The Saiyan took a deep breath, walking through the crowd, his mind overwhelmed- his heart thumping, fear rising as he stepped into the cool night air. His hand began to shake, and he wished he had a cigarette, he hadn’t had one in weeks…

He had smoked with her here, though. He had shared a moment with her, listened to her tell him about her planet, how her people had been destroyed. They were more alike than he would have ever liked to admit in that regard, but now she was lost. Lost to him again in an endless universe.

-

Vegeta had questioned some of the patrons as well as some of the other bartenders, and all of them had basically the same story. One of the customers had actually been Bulma’s coworker and she had confirmed that Bulma didn’t work at the compound anymore, hadn’t seen Bulma in four months. The alien gave Vegeta a sad smile and a cigarette before he left.

Four months Bulma had been gone, sent off to gods-only-knew where. No one knew, apparently not even the managers. A quarter of the factory had been rounded up and shipped off, all of those who _belonged_ to Frieza, those who had no choice in the matter.

_Frieza, that motherfucker._

Vegeta ashed his cigarette in the soft breeze outside the bar, his lamenting suddenly turned to anger, bloody-red hatred that welled up from the pit of his stomach and radiated through his body in rushing bursts, each wave feeding the next and growing within.

Frieza had taken her away from him twice. Frieza had controlled both of their lives, had ruined them, hadn’t allowed them any autonomy in their personal or professional life - hadn’t permitted him to be any more than a soldier making soldiers wages. The lizard fucker hadn’t allowed him any joy in any fucking aspect of his miserable life; the bastard had destroyed his people, his birthright - and had taken _her_ away twice.

She was the only thing that he had even looked forward to for six fucking months… to see her for a few days, to grasp at some semblance of comfort and hope. _Hope_. It was something she had always instilled in him, and he had lost it until he found her the second time, the needle in the proverbial haystack - and she had been hidden away again, all because of _Frieza._

The Saiyan Prince knew it had been stupid to cling to that dumb fucking notion - the expectation for something better; to grasp at something good and hope that it would hold fast.

 _Stupid._ Disappointment was all he had ever known.

And again, she was gone. _Gone_ …she was gone.

He threw the butt of his cigarette to the ground. He had a lot to do.

-

Bulma returned to her tiny apartment, utterly exhausted once again. Her days had grown longer at her new ‘job’, she never had a day off anymore; some days were ten hours, others were sixteen. And her pay had been docked even, the emperor needed to save money - and if his slave labor suffered, so be it.

And Bulma suffered, but she wouldn’t give up hope.

She couldn’t. Not now.

She held her growing belly tenderly, smiling softly to herself as she felt her baby kick and squirm. Her birth control chip had clearly failed six months earlier when she had slept with Vegeta. She felt guilty at first, upset that she was bringing a child into such a horrible world - but there was nothing she could do about it other than hope and plan.

She wouldn’t let her baby suffer like she had, not a damn chance. She would do anything she possibly could to give it the best life possible, even if it meant scrambling an empire ship and escaping into the stars. Anything would be better than having her baby grow up under the reign of Freiza… and if it came out looking like a Saiyan, well, that could present its own set of problems.

And so, she stared out of her tiny window, and above the light pollution from the crammed barracks, she was barely able to see a spattering of stars. Somewhere out there in the vast emptiness of space was her friend, her lover, the unknowing father of her unborn child. With any luck he might be looking for her by now…

She could only hope.

_Hope._

EPILOGUE:

Bulma stared out the window at the stars shining brightly over the empty, darkened barracks, wondering what in the hell was going to happen next.

It had been three weeks since the rumors of the overthrow of the throne had been whispered, and it had become real when the empire started breaking down. The officers that had controlled Bulma and the other workers had dissipated over the weeks, and only a five days prior she had gone into work, only to find the doors locked shut.

They said it had been a golden Saiyan that had ended the lizard - it didn’t make sense, but the rumors had all been the same. There had been whispers that the golden one had also been the Saiyan Prince, once fallen from grace, who had come back to regain his crown…

She knew without a doubt it had been Vegeta.

She needed to stay put despite the fact that everyone else had fled, heading back to their own planets or escaping to a safe world… But Bulma had to stay.

If she left again, he may never find her.

“Momma, I’m hungry!” Trunks whined, playing with some makeshift toys on the floor in her cramped apartment.

Bulma looked down at her little boy as he rolled a ball over the floor, waving his deep blue-grey tail nonchalantly as he made a crashing sound with his mouth when the ball hit a small box that was constructed to look vaguely like a car. Trunks had coloring and hair like her father, but otherwise he was all Vegeta- but softer. Sweeter; _innocent_.

“Okay kid, let’s eat,” Bulma grinned at her four-year-old and opened up her large canvas bag. She had scavenged canned food, water, and supplies from abandoned apartments, and she used a manual can opener to get their pitiful dinner ready.

The electricity had gone out three days prior.

“When’s the lights coming back on?” Trunks asked, making his toys ‘fly’ around the candlelit room as Bulma heated the canned vegetables and meats over a battery powered burner she had constructed from various parts she had scavenged.

 “Well, I don’t know, but if we don’t get out of here soon then I’ll have to make us some light…” Bulma trailed, biting her lip. That part would be easier said than done, at least with what little she did have available to her…

But with any luck she wouldn’t have to worry about that.

She could only hope.

-

Bulma sat down at the bar with Trunks, sighing as he ate his food heartily. It didn’t seem to matter to the boy how bad the food was, he always ate it with a gusto she could only attribute to his Saiyan side. Vegeta had eaten an extraordinary amount of food in Bulma’s apartment when he had stayed, so it must have had something to do with their metabolism, something that Trunks had certainly inherited.

Bulma distractedly ate her share, giving what was left to the growing boy who was more than happy to finish her leftovers. She couldn’t help but be drawn to her window once again, a strange sort of nervous anticipation had overtaken her, and she knew she needed to keep watch… for something. _For him._

Trunks didn’t question her when went back to the window, and he resumed playing as she kept watch, staring out into the darkness. Anticipating the unknown.

-

Trunks had fallen asleep on the threadbare couch, curling up into a ball after Bulma had tucked him in. She yawned, sidling up behind him and holding him tightly as he breathed rhythmically, but she never took her eyes off the tiny window above her kitchen sink.

She hummed a song she remembered from her childhood, a lullaby about a twinkling star mostly just to soothe herself - and she thought she might as well pass out. She was tired, having been standing guard for three days, waiting on something…someone… _him_.

Her eyes began to close as she buried her face into her boy’s lavender colored hair when a flash cut across the sky, illuminating the darkness outside the little window and catching her attention.

Bulma’s eyes shot open and she scooted off the couch, trying not to startle Trunks as she ran to the window. Her heart rabbited in her chest as she looked around in the dark, noticing lights somewhere in near distance, just beyond the barracks. _A ship…_

She watched with bated breath, hoping to catch a glimpse at whatever came from the light. It could be scavengers, could be someone else looking for a loved one… but deep down she knew.

He had come for her.

Bulma watched intently as a single figure walked through the plaza below, and she nearly gasped as it took to flight with a golden energy that so few in the universe possessed. She smiled widely, her heart galloping as she called over her shoulder at Trunks.

“Trunks, wake up.”

“Ughh…” the boy groaned when she called for him again.

“Wake up!"

 “What is it?” Trunks asked sleepily, sitting up from his slumber and rubbing his eyes as he yawned. Bulma smiled at him widely, motioning for him to follow her.

“Come on, hurry, there’s someone you need to meet.”

Trunks gave his mother a funny look before he obeyed reluctantly, slipping his shoes on at the door and following Bulma down the stairs.

“Who is out here in the dark? That’s just weird, momma,” Trunks complained, grabbing his mother’s hand as they made their way down several flights. Bulma grinned back at her boy, squeezing his little hand slightly.

“You’ll see.”

Bulma exited the building with Trunks in tow and she was glad they were both wearing long sleeves when the cool night air rushed through the door. She guided him gingerly into the open, eerily silent plaza, looking up as they walked over the concrete and watching for a flash of light in the night sky - when a golden burst landed suddenly before them, startling them both.

Bulma squeezed Trunks’ hand as they watched the burst of energy dissipate, revealing a stern, armored man with a shock of black hair standing less than ten feet away in the pale moonlight.

It was really him… Vegeta had come for her. _For them._

“Who is that?” Trunks finally asked in wonder, not taking his eyes off the reserved man before them.

“That’s your papa,” Bulma smiled, tears welling up in her eyes as she met Vegeta with open arms, embracing him for the first time in nearly five years. She hugged him tightly in silence, breathing him in, her joy indescribable - and finally the man reciprocated slightly, placing his arms on her waist and burying his face in Bulma’s hair, which had grown out past her shoulders.

“I’ve waited for you,” Bulma whispered, tears falling onto her lover’s broad shoulder as he nodded slightly, “I knew you could do it. I knew you would end him.”

Vegeta nodded into her hair, letting her hold on just a few more moments before letting her go and staring at the boy in subdued awe.

“This is our son, Trunks,” Bulma sniffed, crouching down and holding onto her son’s narrow shoulders as he looked up at his father in curiosity.

Father and son stared at one another silently for some time before Trunks looked over his shoulder at his mother with an expression she hadn’t ever seen him make, and she knew he was silently looking for approval to go to the Saiyan standing stoically before them. Bulma nodded at him, giving her boy a reassuring, teary-eyed smile as she let go of his shoulders, and the lavender-haired child walked up to his father, looking up at the deadpan expression of the powerful Saiyan, seemingly desperate to assess the man’s demeanor.

“Mama’s told me a lot about you,” Trunks said quietly, swaying his blue-grey tail back and forth as the Saiyan nodded at him.

“You should wrap your tail around your waist when you are confronted by strangers, it’s a weakness unless you are trained to withstand the debilitation it can produce,” Vegeta said sternly before putting a gloved hand on the boy’s head and scruffing his fine, lavender hair slightly. Trunks gave his father a quizzical look as he wrapped his tail around his waist, and Vegeta nodded at him once again, this time with the slightest grin of approval.

“It’s time we get off this dump and back to the ship, I’ll take us to the _Deific_ and get you both some decent clothes, for the love of the gods some food...”

Bulma stood, startled at the name of their former home, Frieza’s ship…

“But is…Frieza is…”

“I killed him. The ship is mine.”

“So, does that make you…. _The emperor_?”

Vegeta laughed, a genuine thing as he grinned at Bulma teasingly, excitedly. Such a difference from the last time she had seen him…

“It makes me the _king_.”

Bulma’s heart thumped in her chest as she gave the Saiyan a look of shock, wondering why she hadn’t thought of his succession before… hadn’t even dreamed that Vegeta would be the ruler of a vast army…

“And that makes Trunks a prince,” Bulma smiled, looking down at her little boy, tears once again forming in her eyes. She would never have to fear for him again, never have to worry about their next meal or his education… never have to worry about him being taken away from her _ever again._

.

Oh...his Bulma.

It was very clear that she had been desperate, he could tell it in her clothing and her eyes… and she had lost a good deal of weight. _Fucking Frieza_ , godsdamn piece of shit… and all the while, Bulma had given him a son. _A son._

He felt like he should have been more surprised, but strangely enough it seemed _right_ … like somehow, he should have known all along. The most shocking thing to him was the fact that the boy looked nearly like a clone of himself despite his odd coloration and fine hair, that part he had certainly inherited from his mother.

“Mhmm,” Vegeta finally replied, motioning for Bulma to follow him as she grabbed his arm, wide-eyed and overjoyed. He wanted to blurt that it made her a queen as well, but that part could wait a bit…

 “You… you have no idea what we’ve gone through, this means… everything. That you came to find us, I just…”

“Woman, I’ve been trying to find you for five years,” Vegeta interrupted her, his anger for their mutual enemy still fresh and raw. He had trained brutally, had nearly killed himself just to ascend… to become the Saiyan of legend and destroy Frieza.

“This whole time…” Bulma marveled, taking hold of their son’s hand and guiding him as she kept stride with the Saiyan.

“You’re the whole reason I… well, I…”

Bulma stared at Vegeta, excitedly anticipating his next words, and he looked away from her. She was the whole reason he had gotten so far. Losing her for the second time was what spurred him on to pursue the dream he had as a youth, the dream to dominate his oppressor and to end Frieza’s reign.

“When I came back for you and you weren’t there I upheld my former resolution to kill Frieza.”

She was the spark to his fire, the one who brought him hope despite the hopelessness. It was a sappy thing that wasn’t easy for him to admit - and so he wouldn't, not yet.

“And now,” Vegeta stopped, looking at Bulma in earnest, “We’re going to rule.”

Bulma glanced at him, narrowing her eyes slightly as he began walking again.

“But we’re not taking planets, right? Not like yours or mine…”

“No, woman, we’re not going to do any of that shit. I _will_ rule, but I won’t do it Frieza’s way.”

 _No way_. He didn’t care if it was the true Saiyan way or not, he would _not_ follow in that bastards’ footsteps.

“Then what will you do?”

“Be the king.”

Bulma lifted an eyebrow at him and he grinned slightly.

”I have… well, I have a lot of capital now. There are limitless opportunities. But my men are so scattered, we’re in the process of allocating an uninhabited planet to set up a new stronghold, somewhere that’s not covered in fucking ice.”

“Earth,” Bulma said simply, like it wasn’t even a question of where they should go. It _was_ a habitable planet that was exterminated of its sentient lifeforms… It was a little far out of the way, and likely needed a massive amount of infrastructure razed- but it _could_ work. And it’s what she wanted, so it _would_ work.

“Earth it is, then,” Vegeta murmured as she beamed at him, gorgeous as ever in the moonlight - _his Bulma_. Against all the odds they had finally made it; so much had been taken away from them that could never be returned, but they had each other - and in a way, he thought, he was finally going home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had a bit of writers block lately, so it's been far too long between chapters and I apologize! Thank you all so much for reading and sticking with this sad story- I decided to end it a quite a bit better than what I had originally intended, and I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. <3 
> 
> Edited by the fantastic HannaBellLecter!


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